Tastes just like risotto…. except it’s far quicker to make! Also known as Orzo, this risoni recipe comes with juicy chicken, a creamy parmesan sauce and plenty of hidden vegetables. It’s a quick one pot recipe the kids are sure to love. (And grown ups too!)
Creamy Chicken and Vegetable Risoni (Orzo)
This is a quick dinner recipe that will tick all your boxes:
✅ fast and easy to make – 10 minute cook!
✅ made with everyday pantry staples
✅ highly customisable – use whatever vegetables and proteins you want
✅ complete meal – protein, vegetables, carbs, dairy!
✅ the sort of food that’s universally appealing, one that big and little people love
Is there a difference between Orzo and Risoni?
Nope, they’re the same thing! Tiny rice shaped pasta that’s widely available nowadays, it’s called risoni here in Australia but most countries in the world call it orzo.
A quick Risoni recipe that’s a complete dinner made in one pot!
Ingredients you need
And here’s what you need for this Creamy Chicken and Vegetable Risoni. There’s plenty of substitution and customisation options – see below.
LOADS of substitution options!
Loads and loads… even the risoni!
Risoni / orzo – sub with other very small pasta (like kiddie alphabet, tiny macaroni)
Chicken – any protein, or skip it
Frozen veg – I use this for convenience, sub with any diced vegetables
Baby Spinach – I throw in a couple of handles to get extra nutrition in. Use any wilt-able veggies (even the leafy end of Asian greens!) or add more veggies
Parmesan – any grated cheese!
Flour – any type of flour (white, brown, self raising, cake flour)
Milk – dairy or non dairy! Or a mix of cream and water, or evaporated milk
Chicken stock (broth) – stock cube with water. In emergencies, use water and lots more cheese! 😂
Onion – leeks, extra garlic, geen onion, shallots
Garlic – garlic powder, extra onion
How to make it
If you’re wondering how on earth this risoni recipe can be cooked so quickly, here’s why – risoni / orzo takes a mere 8 minutes to cook from start to finish.
So we only have it on the stove for 7 minutes, then the tiny rice-like grains keep cooking while you’re faffing around getting bowls out, serving it up, sprinkling on parmesan and yelling for everyone to get to the table for dinner. 😂
Use a pan that is reasonably deep – around 5cm / 2.5″ or more. Otherwise, use a large pot. Heat the oil then sauté the garlic and onion for 1 minute to give them a head start. Then sear the chicken for 2 minutes until the outside is seared but the inside is still raw.
Add frozen vegetables (still frozen ok) and flour, then stir until the flour is incorporated.
Add the uncooked risoni/orzo, stock and milk, then stir well. Bring to simmer then adjust heat so it’s bubbling gently (see video). Cook for 7 minutes (no lid), stirring every now and then, until risoni is almost tender (still quite soupy at this stage).
Add parmesan and spinach, stir through until the spinach is wiled.
The consistency should be like a loose risotto (it absorbs liquid and thickens quite quickly when serving), nice and creamy. So don’t stress if it looks more soupy than what you want when you take it off the stove, it will thicken as it sits around.
Serve, garnished with parsley and more parmesan if desired!
This one pot method of cooking is an excellent quick-meal option for busy nights. It works for long strand pasta (like this One Pot Chicken Alfredo and One Pot Bolognese) as well as other short pastas (like in this One Pot Vegetable Pasta and Broccoli Pasta).
The recipe makes enough for 4 to 5. Leftovers will keep for a few days – but note that leftover pasta is never quite as saucy. Or try making Muffin Tin Spaghetti Nests with the leftovers which kids absolutely adore! ~ Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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One Pot Chicken, Vegetable & Parmesan Orzo (Risoni)
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1/2 onion , diced
- 250g / 8oz chicken thigh or breast , cut into bite size pieces
- 2 1/2 cups frozen diced vegetables (carrots, peas, corn, capsicum/peppers, anything!)
- 1 1/2 cups orzo / risoni , uncooked (Note 1)
- 1 1/2 tbsp flour
- 2 1/4 cups milk , any fat %
- 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock / broth (low sodium)
- 3 cups baby spinach (packed)
- 3/4 cup (tightly packed) parmesan , finely grated (or store bought sandy type)
- 1/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Serving
- More parmesan
- Parsley or chives, if desired
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pan over high heat. Make sure the pan is reasonably deep – around 5cm / 2.5" or more. Otherwise, use a large pot.
- Sear chicken – Add garlic and onion, cook for 1 minute. Add chicken, then cook for 2 minutes until seared on the outside but still raw inside.
- Vegetables and flour – Add frozen vegetables (still frozen ok) and flour, stir until flour is incorporated.
- Add uncooked risoni – Add risoni/orzo, stock and milk, then stir well.
- Cook 7 minutes – Bring to simmer then adjust heat so it's bubbling gently (see video). Cook for 7 minutes (no lid), stirring every now and then, until risoni is almost tender (still quite soupy at this stage).
- Add parmesan, spinach, salt and pepper. Stir through until the spinach is wilted.
- Serve – The consistency should be like a loose risotto (it absorbs liquid and thickens quite quickly when serving), nice and creamy. Serve, garnished with parsley and more parmesan if desired!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Originally published June 2014. Updated June 2019 with fresh new photos, new writing, new video added and most importantly, Life of Dozer section added!
More risoni / orzo recipes
I love risoni because it’s so quick to cook – making it super handy for quick dinners!
One Pot Italian Chicken Orzo / Risoni Pasta – cosy, saucy one pot chicken and risoni dinner
Orzo / Risoni Bolognaise – one pot bolognese pasta dish!
Greek Lemon Orzo Salad – a bright fresh pasta salad loaded with Greek flavours
Creamy Salmon Risoni / Orzo (15 Minute Meal) – tastes like risotto, except MUCH faster to make!
Creamy Mushroom and Spinach Orzo (Risoni) (One Pot) – tastes like a creamy mushroom risotto
Baked Greek Chicken Orzo (Risoni) – Greek chicken AND orzo made in one pot!
Pea, Zucchini and Pesto Orzo / Risoni – a wonderful quick side dish
Life of Dozer
Sunny Tuesdays call for lazy working lunches out by the water…. (this is at The Boat Shed in Palm Beach, Sydney 🇦🇺. Not too far from where I live!)
Had a chicken breast that needed cooking, so I gave this recipe a spin. Followed it to a T, but found my stock wasn’t doing it justice. So I added a large Knorr’s bouillon cube to the thickening liquid. Perfect.
Sounds great! Sometimes the type of stock can have an impact on the dish, but I’m glad it worked for you!
This was delicious and easy! I do agree with the others, total cooking time (after I prepped and chopped everything) took me 50 minutes total. Mine was also a bit too soupy. Looking forward to leftovers after the orzo soaks in all the flavors! Next time, I will try shrimp with asparagus!!!
This was really good and tasty. I will definitely make it again. I feel though that the 15 minute prep time is overly optimistic. There is garlic and onion to chop. A carrot (s) to wash and peel, a red pepper to wash and chop, don’t forget to wash the spinach and chop it. Whoops, I forgot about the chicken that needs to be cut. None of these things are difficult in itself, but I just found that the time needed was more than 15 minutes. This is a meal that I would never make after work unless the prep work was done the morning before I left for work. Then it would be a snap to prepare. For me, this is a perfect recipe for a weekend meal. So, yes, this recipe is a keeper and I would recommend you make it, but keep in mind that it requires a bit of time and effort. Oh, btw, I did not need the boiling water either. I am going to try freezing the leftovers and I am betting that it will freeze well. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
Hi Lynn! Thank you for the observation regarding the prep time, I will be sure to reassess when I add a video for this recipe! 🙂 N x
Fantastic recipe. Would you recommend trying it with beef? I think the notation of five mins preparation time is a bit on the slim side!
Sorry Terrence, I will revisit some of these older recipes!! Beef is a tough one because it either needs to be cooked super quickly or long and slow 🙂 You could use ground/mince beef but it’d need some seasoning 🙂 N x
Hello! I loove your recipes and am going to try some on weekend… can I ask what would you recommend in case I don’t have chicken broth? For this and other dishes?
Hi Luiz! Do you have chicken bouillon cubes?? I always make sure I have tons on hand as back up! N x
Can this keep well in the fridge or freezer as leftovers without making them into nests?
Yep, it reheated nicely because it’s saucy!
Thanks for another one pot dish.
I love Orzo
You’re so welcome Bronwyn! N x
Can I use any pasta? (i.e penne/macaroni/etc)
Sorry Sana, this one is for Orzo 🙂
Not sure where I went wrong but I really Schruted it lol. I added the correct amount of liquid without the extra water and it took quite awhile to cook the liquids down. Either way it turned out tasty. Hope my littles like it!
o glad it was still tasty Katie!!! N x
Hi Nagi – what a wonderful recipe. I can’t wait for my toddler to try this! Please let me know if this meal is suitable for freezing? Thank you
Hi Arti! Unfortunately not this one, I think it will go gluggy 🙂 Sorry! N x
This recipe is amazing. Thanks for publishing it.
That’s so great to hear Nef! Thanks for letting me know – N x
Made this dish tonight, and the house still smells heavenly. I live with three picky eaters, and everyone ate it – one even asked for seconds and thirds. Yeah!!!
That’s fantastic to hear Beth! Thank you for letting me know – N xx
I made this tonight. My son who is very picky absolutely loved it. I used butternut pumpkin and a medium potato along with carrot, celery and half a large brown onion. And i only used 1/4 cup of parmesan. It was to die for. Thank you for an amazingly tasty, quick dish.
So glad you and your son enjoyed it Marianne, thanks so much for letting me know! N xx
Does it matter who type of milk you use? I usually only keep 1% milk in the house but I am thinking that might not be heavy enough to create this creamy sauce. Do you recommend using 2% or whole instead? Just curious. Recipe looks great! I love Orzo dishes!
Hi Lacey! Actually I make this with no fat and 1% milk all the time! The creaminess comes from the starch in the orzo + parmesan 🙂 Hope you do try it, this is a staple for me!
This was delicious!! I used rotini instead of orzo (I’ve never had orzo but at first glance in the pictures it looked like rotini so I just decided to go with it lol), I added broccoli with the bell peppers, and I added about an extra cup of mixed cheddar and pepper jack cheese, just because we love cheese. It was to die for, will definitely be making it again!! Oh also, I’m a slow cook so it took me a little longer than 15 minutes, but still quick by my standards and definitely worth it!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this Kim! I have a big soft spot for this 🙂 Thank you for coming back to let me know! N x
Dear Author,
I made this tonight and it was absolutely delish. I made a few adjustments based around my families tastes. So instead of peas, i added asparagus chopped up, I par cooked the asparagus and bell pepper a bit to get a little color to them. I didnt have quite enough parm cheese, i ended up adding sharp white cheddar. Gave it a delightful tang and extra creaminess. Also i did double the recipe being i have a largeish family. Took a bit longer, but still turned out quite tasty. Will make this again easily. Ive been enjoying the 1 pot meals, i perfer cooking from scratch but every now and then, i need a good meal with little hassle.
I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed it Devon! Thank you for letting me know! N x
Hello, I’m new to Pinterest and found your recipe for creamy chicken with orzo and parmesan in one pot! I then started looking at all the other recipes you have and read a few of your comments and I can’t wait to begin trying your recipes and I love your passion! So thank you and I hope to make plenty of your creations! God Bless
Thank you for your wonderful message Terry, I’m so glad you like the look of my recipes!!!
Hi Nagi, do you think you could use cream instead of the milk and flour? Just wanted to know if there was a reason you used the latter instead of cream?
Hi Zara! I use flour and milk because it’s a lot less calories but still really creamy and smooth! 🙂
This is a very good dish! I made it for the first time early this week but added a couple of tbl. of sour cream and some mushrooms. My husband raved about it and wants it again! I’ll be trying it on my grandkids next. Will try some other vegetables next time.
So glad you enjoyed it Liz, thanks for letting me know!! 🙂
Can I double this recipe in the same pot? I was wondering if you have tried it.?
Hi Beth! Nope, I haven’t tried it but it will work just fine. 🙂 Orzo is safe to scale up and down, unlike rice which you need to be more careful with. 🙂